his wonderful intelligence. If there is a pet goat in the neighborhood try to have him visit 

 the grade. Bring out strongly the great importance of the cow to man and the use of the 

 horse in caring for them upon the great plains of the west. The importance of the reindeer 

 to the people of northern Europe and Asia and of the camel to the "children of the desert." 

 Cocoons for the reeling of silk may be purchased from the Nonotuck Silk Co. , Florence, Mass. 

 Small hand reels are easily made from wooden circles, connected with stiff wires and having 

 an axis on some suitable support. Instead of a crank twirl the axis in the fingers. They may 

 be made at the tinsmith's at small expense. Remove the floss from the dry cocoons, soak for 

 two or three minutes in boiling water to soften the cement and begin pulling off the silk until 

 you come to a single thread which is then looped over the reel. If the cocoons are not soaked 

 long enough the thread will break; if too long the cocoons become flabby and the silk comes 

 off in layers. Very attractive exhibits of spun silk may be obtained gratuitously from Cheney 

 Brothers, South Manchester, Mass. Cotton seeds and bolls may be obtained from Mrs. A. G. 

 Helmer, of Helmer, Georgia. If flax is not grown in the neighborhood a small bed of it may 

 be raised in the school garden, along with the cotton. The main purpose of introducing the 

 various processes connected with the manufacture of clothing is for illustration, rather than 

 the acquiring of skill in the doing. Have the children do their best, however, and get credit- 

 able results as far as possible. 



The methods of twisting fibrous materials into thread by means of the fingers can be very 

 simply shown and the advantages and simple methods of carding be understood. The 

 Elementary School Record (University of Chicago Press) No. 3, on Textiles, gives a simple 

 and helpful discussion of the spinning by means of the distaff and spindle of the children's own 

 manufacture. The school should posses an old spinning-wheel and some individual may still 

 be found in most communities who knows how to run it. Small hand looms may be made 

 from old slate frames, by driving a row of small nails across either end to hold the warp. Let 

 children make a simple design for a doll's blanket, mat or shawl and then execute it in yarn. 

 A more elaborate type of loom, of which it would be well to have a working model in the 

 school-room, is figured and described in Black and Carter's Natural History Lessons. This 

 will prepare the way for an understanding of how the weaving is extensively carried on to-day 

 by means of complicated machinery. In connection with the idea of clothing the child is 

 led to see that it is in itself not warming, but simply prevents the heat of the body from escap- 

 ing. The idea if not the name "poor conductor" is to be learned. A block of ice is wrapped 

 up in a blanket in the summer time to preserve it. Crude iudia rubber may be obtained from 

 the larger manufacturers of rubber goods. In the early fall the behavior of a drop of milk from 

 the milkweed stem, when placed between the thumb and finger may be observed. As it dries 

 it assumes much the appearance of genuine rubber. Experiment with a larger quantity. 



A little previous knowledge of the properties, history and location in the neighborhood of 

 the typical soils will be found necessary for the successful presentation of the early spring 

 work. Consult some of the references given below. This work must be decidedly practical 

 in order to hold the interest of the children. A funnel and a bottle will serve as a rain-gauge, 

 the water for measurement being poured into a cylindrical vessel the area of whose cross- 

 section is equal to a certain simple part of the area of the larger opening of the funnel, say one- 

 tenth. A crude but satisfactory guage may be made at the tinners. It should be exposed so 

 as not to be sheltered by trees or buildings and should at the same time be quite accessible to 

 the children. In the seed testing a certain number of seeds, from one to one hundred, may be 

 counted out for the children, depending upon their size and the quantity on hand. The seeds 

 are given favorable conditions for germination and the results carefully noted and tabulated. 

 In the late spring the larvae of the clothes moth may be collected in the homes, brought to 

 school in bottles and fed upon small bits of woolen goods. A knowledge of their destructive- 

 ness to clothing and sly habits should be taught and methods of preventing their development 

 in the home understood. (See Hodge's Nature Study, page 71). If the teacher desires some 

 interesting observations may be made upon the spider as a type of spinning insect. Their 

 work may be observed both out doors and in the school-room in cages or jars. Try the 

 experiment described upon page 420 of Hodge's book to show the intelligence of the spider. 

 Series of pictures should be secured from various sources to illustrate the principal topics. 

 The stereoscope may be used to very excellent advantage if sets of views can be procured, 

 such as those illustrating cattle and sheep raising, the rearing of silkworms, the growth of 



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